scBTC and LBTC — Bringing Bitcoin to the Sonic DeFi Scene
As the DeFi ecosystem on Sonic grows, more projects are expanding support for Bitcoin-based assets.
Rings Protocol and Lombard Finance are at the forefront of expanding Bitcoin’s reach on Sonic. Lombard’s LBTC (a liquid staked BTC derivative) has already grown to have a major presence on Ethereum, with nearly $2B in circulation. Now, Rings is teaming up with Lombard to introduce scBTC — a fully backed, yield-bearing Bitcoin asset on Sonic collateralized by LBTC, eBTC, and wBTC.
Together, scBTC and LBTC offer a robust on-chain representation of Bitcoin. LBTC is widely recognized for its security, liquidity, and adoption across lending and trading protocols, while scBTC harnesses that liquidity to unlock new yield opportunities on Sonic.
Below, we’ll explore both scBTC and LBTC, how they relate to each other, and how to get started with each.
About Rings and scBTC
Rings Protocol is a project on Sonic that enables users to deposit various tokens — ranging from stablecoins to ETH and BTC derivatives — and mint yield-bearing “sc” versions of those assets (scUSD, scETH, and scBTC).
Rings leverages farming strategies by Veda Labs to use deposited assets to generate yield through protocols on both Ethereum and Sonic.
With scUSD and scETH already live, scBTC is the logical next step, opening up Sonic to a yield-bearing, Bitcoin-based asset.
What Is scBTC?
scBTC is a yield-bearing token minted by Rings Protocol, backed by LBTC, eBTC, and wBTC — high-profile Bitcoin derivatives. This structure ensures:
- A secure BTC peg maintained by proven collateral sources (LBTC, eBTC, wBTC).
- On-chain yield generation from multiple strategies managed by Veda Labs.
Because scBTC parallels scUSD and scETH in functionality, anyone already familiar with those assets will find scBTC easy to use. You simply deposit collateral to mint scBTC, and then you can stake your scBTC to receive stkscBTC, which provides weekly yield.
If you want to participate in governance and earn incentives (often called “bribes”) instead of a weekly yield, you can lock your stkscBTC in exchange for a Rings veNFT that grants voting rights each epoch.
How To Get scBTC
To get scBTC on Sonic natively, follow these steps:
- Obtain LBTC:
- On Ethereum, you can either swap to LBTC or stake native BTC with Lombard to mint LBTC. On Sonic, you’ll need to swap to the token.
- Deposit LBTC/eBTC/wBTC into Rings Protocol:
Once you have scBTC on Sonic, you can start using it across many DeFi apps on the network or stake it through Rings to earn weekly yield.
About Lombard Finance and LBTC and eBTC
Lombard Finance is a key player in Bitcoin-focused DeFi, most notably for introducing LBTC, a liquid staked version of Bitcoin. By staking BTC through Lombard, users receive LBTC (1:1 ratio).
Since its launch in 2024, LBTC has grown to nearly $2B in circulation, finding a home in Aave, Pendle, Morpho, and other protocols. This large circulating supply and deep liquidity make LBTC a natural choice as a prime collateral asset.
On the other hand, eBTC is the first-ever Bitcoin LRT (liquid re-staking token) offered by Ether.fi. eBTC uses LBTC as collateral under the hood, which gives eBTC holders the potential to earn multiple layers of yield because they benefit both from LBTC’s staking rewards (backed by actual BTC) and Ether.fi’s re-staking strategies on Ethereum. eBTC can also be deposited into Rings on Ethereum to mint scBTC.
By integrating LBTC, eBTC, and wBTC into scBTC’s collateral pool, Rings Protocol leverages their stability and liquidity to maintain scBTC’s robust peg while unlocking new yield paths on Sonic.
Conclusion
Rings Protocol and Lombard Finance are transforming Bitcoin’s place in DeFi. LBTC has long established itself as a reliable, liquid representation of BTC on Ethereum alongside eBTC. Now, with scBTC, Rings and Lombard bring a yield-bearing BTC asset to Sonic — an ecosystem known for unique DeFi opportunities.
